Acupuncture as an adjunct to exercise based physiotherapy for osteoarthritis of the knee: randomised controlled trial.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

To investigate the benefit of adding acupuncture to a course of advice and exercise delivered by physiotherapists for pain reduction in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee.

Design

Multicentre, randomised controlled trial.

Setting

37 physiotherapy centres accepting primary care patients referred from general practitioners in the Midlands, United Kingdom.

Participants

352 adults aged 50 or more with a clinical diagnosis of knee osteoarthritis.

Interventions

Advice and exercise (n=116), advice and exercise plus true acupuncture (n=117), and advice and exercise plus non-penetrating acupuncture (n=119).

Main outcome measures

The primary outcome was change in scores on the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities osteoarthritis index pai

SUBMITTER: Foster NE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1962890 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature